| Q. |
What is electrical safety testing? |
| A. |
Electrical safety testing is a general term used to describe the testing procedures a manufacturer's product must pass in order to be deemed safe to sell to consumers within specific countries. More often than not, regulatory agencies establish these compliance test procedures. They in turn provide their seal of approval, known as an agency listing, to a product that meets their standards. |
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| Q. |
What kinds of tests are considered electrical safety tests? |
| A. |
There are 5 important electrical safety tests that manufacturers perform: Dielectric Withstand (Hipot) test, Ground Bond test, Ground Continuity test, Insulation Resistance test, Line Leakage test. |
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| Q. |
Who needs to perform electrical safety tests? |
| A. |
Electrical safety testing has been implemented and enforced for one reason: to protect consumers from potentially fatal electric shock. These tests are performed to ensure that products, including anything from household electric coffee makers to hairdryers and computers meet industry standards for construction, performance, ratings, markings and instruction manuals. Not only do manufacturers want to prevent faulty components from being installed in their products, but they also want to catch workmanship defects in assemblies before installation. Following a proper safety testing procedure can help to identify production problems before a product is shipped preventing costly recalls and embarrassing public announcements. Still other manufacturers test to protect themselves from product liability suits. Whatever the reason may be, electrical safety testing makes good sense for any consumer product manufacturer. |
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| Q. |
How do I determine what instrument type I need? |
| A. |
It is generally helpful to know what agency specification you need to comply with and/or what your in-house testing specifications are. Whether you have this information or not our trained sales staff can help guide you to the correct instrument for your applications. |
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| Q. |
Do safety testers have the ability to test at multiple frequencies? |
| A. |
Yes. Most electrical safety testers are capable of outputting both 50 and 60 hertz signals for use in the United States and Europe . |
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| Q. |
What safety precautions should be taken during electrical safety testing? |
| A. |
Working with high voltage instruments requires knowledge of electronics and basic safety practices in the workplace. Contact your local OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) representative for more information on how to make your workplace a safe environment. AR also provides useful information on safe testing practices and procedures – contact our Customer Support department for more information. |
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| Q. |
What qualifications are necessary for my operators to be able to safely perform the various electrical safety tests? |
| A. |
We advise our customers that operators should have a working knowledge of electricity, safety and testing methodology. This can be accomplished in a number of ways including our educational programs and materials. Test operators do not need to be engineers or technicians but should have a basic understanding of the hazards involved in performing electrical safety tests. |
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| Q. |
What is the difference between a type test and a production line test? |
| A. |
Electrical safety tests are loosely broken up into 2 separate groups, design or type tests, and routine production line tests. Design tests are usually performed for research purposes during the design phase of an electrical product. The information gathered from a design test is useful for finding potential problems with product design and development. Production line tests are usually required to be performed on 100% of the products leaving a facility for sale to consumers. A production line test helps to ensure a particular product is safe for consumer use. |
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| Q. |
What is a Class I product? |
| A. |
Class I appliance: an appliance in which protection against electric shock does not rely on basic insulation only. Any conductive accessible parts are connected to a protective ground conductor so they cannot become live in the event of a failure of the basic insulation. |
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| Q. |
What is a Class II product? |
| A. |
Class II appliance: an appliance in which protection against electric shock does not rely on basic insulation only, but includes additional safety precautions such as double insulation or reinforced insulation. |
